He arched a brow. ‘Please?’
‘Please,’ she said. What was wrong with her? It was as if she’d been stripped of everything civil and she’d become the most basic form of a woman wanting to mate with a man.
Ares reached behind him and pulled his damp T-shirt up and over his head and off, dropping it to the floor. Cassie’s eyes widened on his broad and muscled chest, with its smattering of dark hair.
‘Oh my,’ she breathed, hands itching to touch him.
He said, ‘Go ahead.’
She looked up for a moment. She must have spoken out loud. She moved closer again and put her palms on his chest, fingers spread out. She felt reverent, as if she were worshipping a god. A Greek god. She might have giggled if she hadn’t felt so serious about what she was doing.
His skin was warm, heart thumping under her palms. She moved her hands down and her nails scraped over his nipples, causing him to suck a breath in. She looked up. He shook his head. ‘I’m fine, keep going.’
She went back to her task of exploration. Her hands moved down to that tantalising line of dark hair dissecting his flat belly. And then disappearing under the top of his jeans. Her gaze travelled further down to where there was a very obvious bulge against the denim material.
Her mouth watered. Her fingers were on the button. She looked up. ‘May I?’
He said, ‘Yes, you may.’ There was a rough quality to his voice that sent a shudder of longing through her. She popped open the button and then slowly drew the zip down, releasing Ares from his confinement.
Suddenly it was too overwhelming. She took her hands away and stood back saying, ‘Can you…?’
He seemed to read her mind and put his hands to his jeans, tugging them down and off, taking his underwear with them. Cassie’s avid gaze was glued to Ares’s very hard and very big erection. It was beautiful.Hewas beautiful.
‘Now you.’
Cassie looked up and gulped. He was six feet plus of raw male beauty. An experienced man. How on earth could she hope to engage his interest?He’s interested,prompted a dry voice. Maybe for the moment, thought Cassie, but as soon as he realised just how little she knew…
He reached out and trailed a finger along her jaw. ‘If you change your mind, Cassie, it’s OK.’
Cassie hadn’t expected any of this. And she hadn’t expected him to be so…reassuring. She shook her head. ‘No, I want to… I just…no one has ever seen me naked, except for the women at the palace who dress me sometimes and even they…’ She trailed off. Even they hadn’t seen her fully naked. Exposed.
Ares found one of her hands and picked it up. He interlaced his fingers with hers and led her back through the space to her cabin. Her bed was a tangle of sheets.Oh God, would he think she was a spoiled brat? She didn’t want him to be reminded now that she was a princess.
As if hearing her thoughts he turned to face her and said, ‘Stop thinking.’
‘I… OK.’
He put his hands on the shoulders of her jumpsuit and said, ‘Is this OK?’
She nodded. Her skin was tingling where his fingers rested and then slowly he pushed the shoulders of the jumpsuit down her arms. She wasn’t wearing a bra and the material loosened on her chest, exposing her breasts. She freed her arms.
She could feel her damp skin springing into goosebumps. Her nipples were tingling. She couldn’t look at Ares but she heard his indrawn breath and then something like,Theé mou.
She glanced up and his gaze was fixated on her breasts. He said reverently, ‘You’re beautiful.’
Cassie blushed. Then Ares said, ‘Turn around.’
She did and he pulled the zip at the back all the way down to the bottom of her back. He tugged gently and the material came down over her hips and fell to the floor. She stepped out of the legs. Now she wore only her underwear. Knickers. Lacy.
Ares gathered her hair and brought it over one shoulder. The ends tickled the upper slopes of her breast. He put his hands on her shoulders and stepped close behind her. She felt his heat and smelled his unique musky scent. Musky and spicy and something more exotic.
He turned her around again and now their bodies were almost touching, nothing between them. His erection pressed against her belly. Cassie moved closer and Ares’s eyes flashed.
‘Lie down.’
Cassie really wanted him to kiss her again. But she did as he asked, pushing the sheets aside to lie down. He looked at her, that dark golden gaze travelling over every inch of her. She didn’t feel embarrassed or exposed now, just hungry.
Ares came down on the bed beside her and Cassie was unaware of the fact that they were in a small cabin on a boat that was being rocked and rolled due to the storm outside.
